These Philadelphia shows from 69 represent a band that is just boiling with creative potential- in hindsight we see that they are entering their most creative period and will define their sound and ethos for generations to come- but here we hear a young band whose not afraid to make mistakes, the accumulation of the psychedelic mindset that would define them.

The first set is very standard for the period, with better versions of most of the songs ( I think) being performed the previous night. Jerry shows us a sign of what's to come in a monster second set in Morning Dew, the end of the song is a beautifully creative solo.

The start of the 2nd set starts with some cosmic folk music- in Dupree’s and Mountains.. This new material formed the orign of what would become the Dead’s Americana content, and the short acoustic set is wonderfully played- especially Mountains..

Talk about how one song is vastly different from night to night- Darkstar lyrics start at 4 minutes- last night 17 minutes – This one soars- at 22 minutes, great organ playing- The band is playful throughout – beautiful rhythmic conversation between guitars and Phil around the 10 minute mark.

The Eleven is transcendant before unfortunately cutting out- This is some of Jerry’s finest playing- completely free, exuberant, joyous even, and even though he’s coloring outside of the lines, what he paints is bright enough to blur those lines.

The 12 minutes of Alligator after drums might be the best part of a really strong 2nd set, everything is firing on all cylnders, and you can catch a glimpse into just how magic this band was in 1969, and with hindsight can see direct lines in how great they would be. This jam also contains a look at at what would later become the reprise to Going Down the Road feeling bad-

Epic long night of music at the end of an eleven show mini tour.

According to Dennis McNally's book, "a note on one of the tape boxes told of musicians having a creatively good time: "Show actually ended 5:38 A.M."

The Dead had a different road manager for this mini tour, Bill Belmont. McNally said their main road manager often didn't return with the cash "having been shaken down either by the band, usually the drummers, or by Rock Scully."

Not sure what some of the detractors at talking about, but this is one of my favorite shows ever. It takes you on a journey from start to finish. Log in, turn on and tune in, and tell me how you feel after the show.

oh c'mon folks, how often did Pigpen blow harp on 'Cosmic Charlie' ?

i feel this is one of those ragged-but-right shows, teetering on the edge of disaster then recovering balance again for a moment (e.g. the opening Rag).

well worth the listen if you like it raw !!

the cuts are just too brutal on this one.

fortunately, the set ending Alligator>Caution is easily among the greatest of all time, with a really inventive 'big you goodnight' section and face-melting riffs during the caution. TIFTOO and Lovelight are also standouts, but with so much of The Eleven and Death Don't missing, i just can't give this 5 stars...

Wow! just listened to the whole thing and had to see what everyone else wrote - not reviewed since 06? Wow - Jer is so strong on this, confident, upfront, healthy! And to make this such a strong show are the contributions from pig and the rest. Listen to the whole thing and i'm sure you'll be very pleased. peace.

Off we go...weeee. I love Doin that Rag and it's such a fun way to open. I can just imagine the band taking the stage, putzin around for abit and then the opening riff. Nice.. Jerry's voice is primed for this night, he sounds in beautiful late 60s form. Cryptical is very nicely done, and it flows smoothly into a dark sounding other one for the period. This TOO is very solid, darker than others from the period, but the movement it makes in heading back to cryptical is stellar.
The morning dew here is very unique, def a transitional version for them. Regardless, it is damn powerful. The lovelight is awesome..it would be a top version were it not for a significant cut around the 16th minute that clearly leaves us short a big build up jam to the end.

Duprees is nicely done, Jerry's voice is just right..and as should be, Mountains benefits a great deal from this, he nails it. Beautiful rendition. Very nice movement from Jerry to the electric coming out of Mountains. And it moves to.....Dark Star, horay! This Dark Star is good. Not great, but a very solid period piece. Meandering isn't the right word, but it borders on that. There were some tuning issues in the middle of it which likely contributed to the stalled search. Very introspective. This show has dark undertones throughout most of it and the Dark Star is no exception. The band is really taking part in the wave of energy on this night. Nice run through of St. Stephen, but man is it inconsequential by the 5th minute of this Eleven..this one oozes yummy....that is until it cuts to the middle of Death Don't. Man this one hurts..it's a lot of time cut, and shit does it hurt.

The Alligator>Drums>Alligator>Caution segment is fantastic. The second alligator has some very imaginative jamming in it and the Caution is blistering. Jerry is really smoking by the middle of it..the caution itself takes a few short turns which add some thickness to the version as a whole, getting some nice departure from the song structure. This segment including the feedback and WBYG is just one step short of being all time epic..all the same it is a wild listen and should be heard.

Overall, the show is great, but the cuts are costly in both cases.

Sound 6.5/10
Show 6/10
Overall 6/10

Very strong Eleven and 2nd Alligator. Beautiful UJB Jam in the 2nd Alligator.

The Other One just has a brooding intensity that you will like!

I just wish the later years' versions had that kind of energy!

This is just Jerry ripping it up for an entire show. If you started listening to the band during the 80's you never heard it like this.

I'm glad The Dead now are dusting off these old classic songs that haven't seen the light of day for 30 years like Cryptical Envelopment, New Potato Caboose and Mountains of the Moon that I never heard the Grateful Dead play in concert (I went to my first show in '73 and used to wish in vain to hear them.)

In 2004 at Red Rocks when the band started playing Cosmic Charlie it brought a tear to my eye.

LISTEN TO this SHow Baby ;()

Its INCREADBLE ---- Very Good

Come on, Spelunki, 'fess up. You weren't even born yet when this was recorded, were you? Please take this a a good natured poke in the ribs. It just cracks me up when I read stuff like what you wrote. Just sit back and thank your lucky stars that there were a bunch of old codgers around gettin' it all on tape for ya'...

NWR

here are among the most amazing things I have ever heard . . . Jerry's searing . . . (it's got it's cowbell) and Feedback stands alone, pure, and Divine.

If you are an Other One devotee, you have to give this one a listen. I did a random listen to '68 to '70 versions and this one stands out for its intensity. There is pretty much no let up until about the 6:10 mark, just snarling, angry, early Dead, as it should be. The only drawback...it needs more cowbell.

Few shows stand out in 1969 due to the vast greatness of the entire time period. There are moments, thought, that do stand out. Early spring was a monumental season for Dark Star. This version is particularly gothic with the opening with what sounds like a church bell calling all to worship. The run from DupreeÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂs to the end of the show is sweet. Great Other One and Dew as well. Mountains of the Moon is a fairly rare tune and this is a good one. This is a sweet show.

I can't believe you said that about Cosmic Charlie.

This is great psychedelia and powerful jamming. This period stands alone, and everything on this is great.

I wish i was born in 1950.Would have been 19 in 1969,and primed for the dead!I cant even imagine being at these shows.Im from the middle 80,s brent era.Not bad.....But not even close to the music made in this era!1969 shows are just so mind bending.I wonder if the people seeing these shows at the time knew what they were seeing????I would say..download the whole year

Cosmic Charlie was a song written about all of the wanna-bee hippies invading San Francisco after the Summer of Love. When seen from this perspective, it is a really good song.

Less than 2 weeks before the 'Live Dead' Dark Star was recorded comes this similar, but different, version. Rest of the show's very good, except that annoying & idiotic Cosmic Charlie (what were they thinking?).
Fine show from a peak period, good audio quality for the period.